Dispensing device for receptacles.



F. H. VICK.

DISPENSING DEVICE FOR RECEPTACLES.

APPUCATION FILED ,IAN-16, |915- Patented Mar. 12, 191%` UN-T @TATESDISPENSING DEVICE FOR RECEPTACLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 12, 1918.

Application led January 16, 1915. Serial N o. 2,644.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that FRANK H. VICK, a citizen ofthe United Sta-tes, residing in the city of New York, borough ofManhattan, county and State of New York, have invented a certain new anduseful Dispensing Device for Receptacles, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to receptacles or containers for liquid orsemi-liquid substances, and it is particularly aimed to produceconvenient means whereby the material may be initially, hcrmeticallysealed in the receptacle or container, to be subsequently released, atthe desired time, to withdraw the whole or a portion of said material.If it is desired to withdraw only a portion at any one time, the presentinvention embodies means whereby the receptacle may be substantiallysealed after the initial, partial drawing ofl1 of the material, and thereceptacle is adapted to be unsealed again, from time to time, atsubsequent operations of pouring off the contents of the container,without, however, leaving the interior of said container incommunication with the exterior atmosphere intermediate said drawoffperiods.

It has been proposed heretofore to provide receptacles with spouts,nozzles, and the like, which are positioned opposite apertures in thereceptacle, so that, by manipulating the draw-off devices, communicationcan be opened, at will, between the apertures in the container and thepouring spout. `When these well-known devices are employed, however, thecontents of the receptacle, if it be a sticky or liquid substance,generally corrodes or gums the working parts of the draw-off mechanism,so that it is difficult to operate the same, especially upon the initialopening and withdrawal from the receptacle. This is due to the fact thatthe contents of the receptacle is allowed, at all times, to contact withthe draw-ofi' devices.

With the foregoing in mind, the present invention provides means wherebythe material is entirely contained within the unbroken and unobstructedwalls of the container, and on the exterior of said container ispositioned the draw-off mechanism, so that the material within thecontainer does not come into contact with said mechanism. However, whenit is desired to pour the material from the receptacle, the mechanismmay be operated to disrupt or puncture the wall of the receptacle andpermit of the passage of fluid from the interior thereof.

Speaking generally, the invention embodies a spout arranged for pivotalmovement on the exterior of a container and with said spout isassociated suitable disrupting or puncturing means whereby the moving ofthe spout in a predetermined manner serves to actuate the disruptingmeans to cut away a portion of the wall of the receptacle immediatelyadjacent the outlet passage of the spout. Means is also prof vided toallow of the inlet of air into the receptacle to take the place of thematerial drawn therefrom, and this means may be incorporated in thespout or may be separate therefrom. In either case, after the receptaclehas been initially opened, the spout mechanism and air inlet devices areoperable to close communication between the interior of the receptacleand the exterior thereof.

Featuresof the invention, other than those specified, will be apparentfrom the following specification read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

The accompanying drawings illustrate two embodiments of my invention,which embodiments are illustrative only and do not define the limits ofthe invention.

Figure l is a plan view of a container embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a central, vertical section therethrough, taken on line 2-2 ofFig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmental section taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a section* through the outlet spout, said section being takenon line 4 4 of Fig. 3 and certain parts being omitted, in the interestof clearness.

Fig. 5 is a fragmental elevation of certain air inlet means which Ipreferably employ.

Fig. 6 is a section through said air inlet means, said section being int-he plane of the line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a fragmental section through a modified form of my invention,said section being substantially in the plane of line 2-2 of Fig. 1,through said modified receptacle, and

Fig. 8 is a section taken on line 8 8 of Fig. 7. v

Referring to the drawings, and particularly Figs. l to 6, inclusive, Adesignates a receptacle or'container which, so far as the presentinvention is concerned, may be of paper, sheet metal, or other desiredmaterial. @n the top of the container is positioned a valve casing B,adapted to contain a ball or knob c, Which'forms the base of a spoutornozzle C. Valve casing B may vbe lof any desired convenient ferm,but', forconvenience in manufacture, it is preferably built up from atubular plug I), over wiich lits a shell b. The upper face of plug` 'bis conca'ved to form a seat for ball c, and 'shell is formed to'conforni generally to ball 'c at its upper portion and fit down snuglyover plug b. Ball c is thus substantially'inclosed in suitable bearingswithin valve casing B. Shell b is provided with a 'slot c,circuinferentially thereof, through which nozzle C protrudes, and saidslot is of su'iiicient length and so disposed as to allow vthe spout toassume a vposition substantially parallel With the top 'of thereceptacleor position in angular relation thereto. VValve casing B isvadapted to be secured to the top of the receptacle byv any desiredmeans, suoli as soldering, riveting, 'or the like, so

.as to be fixed in rigid position to said receptacle, and the receptacleis so formed that the Wall of said receptacle is continuous'an'd that noapertures or holes are pro-v vided in juxtaposition with the valvecasing. Thus, when the receptacle has been filled, and the coverapplied, said receptacle may be sealed air-tight, and the materialcontained therein will, in no Way whatever, come into contact with fthedraw-off devices herein efore described.

lt is essential that means be provided to Y allow of thev-Ji'thd'ra'walV of the material from the receptacle atthe desired time,

and, according to .the particular embodiment cf the invention shown,vthis means is embodied ina knife or cutter D, formed integral 'withball c. in the closed position of the valve, spout C is shown in Fig. 2as folded d ouf'n inte parallel relation with the top of the receptacle,and 'cutter D is so positioned on the ball that it is out of operativerelation With the top of the receptacle. However, if spout- C is swungfrom its closed position, shown in full lines in 2, to the positionillustrated in dotted lines therein, it 'will b'elmanifest that thecutter will tray'fel in the arc of a circle from its full line positionto its dotted line position, and, in so moving, will pass through the-topof 'the receptacle and cut a slot therein,

thereby ldisrupting lthe same and affording comm'un'ic'atien between theinterior of the receptacle and the interior of valve casing B.V 'Sp'outvC is provided with a 'longitud-inal -passage'c2, which extends from oneend ofsaid spout through the opposite side of ball 0.l Thus, Vwhen thespout is in the' dotted line position'described, the material Withinth'e'recept'a'cle is 'free to l'ovv, when to be shifted to a` thereceptacle is tilted, through the valve casing and passage c?, to theexterior of the receptacle. After t'he'receptacle has been initiallypencd as described, it will be manifest that the folding down of thespout into its closed position will rotate ball c sufficiently to bringthe inner endof passage c2 into abutting relation `with shell Z2',thereby cutting off communication between the interior and 'exterior' ofthe `casing. Y

It Vis fiv'ell knownv that, in pouring some materials, it is difficultto Withdrau7 the same from a closed container Without providing meansadapted to allow of the entrance of air into said'container during thepouring` of the material therein contained. According `to the presentinvention, `t-his means may be associated with the pouring mechanism ormay lbe separate therefrom. in the preferred form of the invention, lmake the saine independent ofgthe pouring mechanisn'i; c., l positionthe air inlet means atv such a point in the receptacle that,

when said receptacle is tilted t0 :allow thematerial 1to 'iioiv from thespout, the point surface of 4the liquid'contained in the receptacle. Theform of ai" inlet means lrefer-red to embodies 'thinrble E provided witha flange e, by means of which it is adapted to he 'secured by any Wellknow-n means to the Wall of the receptacle. Thimble E is preferablycorrugated circumferentially, as at e, Vand is valso longitudinallyslotted, as at c2, yWherebysaid thini'hle is formed into a plurality ofresilient arms. The upper end of thimble E is open and a `plunger Fnormally projects longitudinally through said thimfble. rEhe upper 'endof plunger' F is provided with a push but ton f, and Vits lower end isprovide-'d `with a sharpened point f; ln attaching the air inlet means.to the receptacle, the `same is accomplished Without puncturing or, inany Way, disrupting the receptacle, so that, until it is desired towithdranv the material there from, the Wall of the receptacle adjacentsaid means is left intact. lfletvever, when it is vdesired to Withdrawsaid material and of the receptacle thereinto through a 'duct v orchannel g, extending longitudinally of plunger F, said air being adaptedto enter passage 'g through slots el? in thim'ble E, andv thereafterflow :through said vpassage and into the interior of the receptacle, lasclearly shown in ldotted lines in Fig. Q;V lVhen the pouring operationis finished, the plug 'may be lifted Vto its initial position, vand itsllowerisc end forms a closure to preclude the admission of air to thereceptacle at this point. It is preferable that suitable means beprovided to retain the plunger in either its open or closed position, asdesired, and this means is illustrated as embodying an enlargement g onthe plunger, which engages with .the annular corrugations e heretoforedescribed and maintains the plunger in either of its positions. Theresiliency of the thimble, occasioned by the slots e2, allows of thepassage of the enlarged portion g from one corrugation to another.

It is manifest, from the foregoing description, that material may behermetically sealed and preserved, in this manner, in storage for a longperiod, without the least chance of air leaking into the receptacle, asis common in the devices now generally employed. Moreover, should thedispensing device be formed from metals which are subject to chemicalaction by the material contained in the receptacle, it is manifest thatsuch materials cannot act upon said metals until the receptacle isdisrupted by the consumer. The device of the present invention is,therefore, highly sanitary and hygienic, and enables perishablematerials to be properly preserved, while, at the same time, providingmeans for facilitating the withdrawal of such materials from theirinclosing containers.

Throughout the foregoing description,the preferred embodiment of theinvention has been considered, but, as I do not restrict myself to thespecific features of construction therein illustrated, I have shown afurther embodiment of the invention in Figs. 7 and 8 of the drawings. Inthe construction therein shown, the draw-ofi' means and air inlet meansare part of the same mechanism and are simultaneously operable. Thespout C, with its coperating ball valve c, the draw-off passage c2, andthe valve casing B mav be constructed in substantially the same manneras that hereinbefore described in connection with the embodiment of theinvent-ion shown in Figs. l to 6, the difference between the twostructures being, mainly, that, in the modified form, ball c is providedwith a circumferential channel 7L, which extends along a portion of thespout C. This channel is so positioned and is of such length that, whenthe spout is manipulated to open position, one end of the channel 7L isin communication with the exterior of the receptacle, whereas the otherend of the channel is in communication with the interior of thereceptacle. Thus, as the material is poured through the passage c2 ofthe spout, air may enter said receptacle through passage h. This form ofdraw-off valve dispenses with the independent air inlet meanshereinbefore described, and is thus more simple in construction and moreeconomical to manufacture. Moreover, in dispensing certain materials, itoperates with considerable eiliciency. It will, of course, be understoodthat the operationfof the spout, z'. c., the manipulation of the same toopen or closed position, is the same as hereinbefore described.

I have shown, in both embodiments of the invention described, thedispensing device positioned on the top of the receptacle, but it willbe understood that this showing is not controlling, since such devicesmay be positioned anywhere upon the wall of said receptacle. Moreover,while I have described a particular form of valve, I wish it understoodthat I may employ other types of valve if desired, the controllingfactor being that the initial operation of the valve disrupt or piercethe receptacle. I do, therefore, not restrict myself to the specificembodiments illustrated and described, but consider my invention asbroadly novel as is commensurate with the appended claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In dispensing means of the class described, a normally sealedreceptacle, a rotary valve mounted on the exterior thereofv and adaptedto be rotated from closed to open position and vice versa, and meansassociated with said valve for piercing said receptacle adjacent saidvalve, when the valve is rotated to its open position, to allow thematerial contained within `the receptacle to be withdrawn through thevalve, said valve being subsequently rotatable to a closed position, inwhich position the break in the receptacle is sealed.

2. In dispensing means of the class described, a normally closedcontainer, a valve casing positioned on the exterior thereof, a rotaryvalve positioned within said valve casing and adapted to be pivotallyshifted from closed to open position and vice versa, said valve beingprovided with an outlet passage, and a cutter mounted on said rotaryvalve whereby, when the valve is rotated into open position, the cutteris caused to pierce the wall of the receptacle to allow of thewithdrawal of the material therein contained, and, when subsequentlyrotated into closed position, serves to seal the break in thereceptacle, in combination with an air inlet duct leading through thevalve for allowing of the passage of air into the container when thevalve is open and the material is flowing from said container throughthe outlet passage.

3. In dispensing means of the class described, anormally closedcontainer, a valve casing positioned on the exterior thereof, a rotaryvalve positioned within said valve casing and adapted to be pivotallyshifted from closed to open position and vice versa, said valve beingprovided with an outlet ,In rtestimony whereof l .have signed I.my nameto this specioationgin the presence of 10 two subscribing Witnesses.

FRANK VIGK.

passage, and e cutter mounted on said rotary valve whereby, when thevalve is rotatedr into open position, the cutter is caused to pierce theWall of the vreceptacle to allow of theY Withdrawal of the `materieltherein contained, and, when subsequently lrotated into closed position,vserves `to Seal the break in the receptacle.

Witnesses:

Y HENRY WooG,

BLAINE WELCH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commssoner of Patenti, e

ashixlgton,v D. C. v Y

